The just-concluded Rwanda Premier League campaign produced mixed moments that are worth noting. From Kiyovu’s challenge for the league title to APR FC winning their third consecutive league trophy, Times Sport looks at five key moments that shaped the league campaign: APR in a league of their own Winning the league title for the third time in a row shows how dominant APR have been over the last three seasons. The arrival of Adil Mohamed has changed everything at the club which was at the time struggling for trophies. The Moroccan coach made a quick impact at the club and helped them win the title twice without losing a single game, a record that could take decades to beat. It’s no surprise that the majority of football fans wanted to see Kiyovu end APR’s dominance and beat them to the title this season but the champions remained focused to high to clinch it by one-point despite losing a series of key games that could have cost them the title. AS Kigali, Rayon Sports and Kiyovu will look to improve in all departments if they are to end APR’s domination of Rwandan football. APR’s unbeaten run comes to an end The army side had not lost a league game under Adil Muhamed until Mukura beat them 1-0 in February, to end the club’s 50-match unbeaten run, the longest in the history of Rwandan football at club level. “Everything is possible in football but I think it’s difficult to do it very quickly because such a performance needs a lot of collective work, a lot of means plus wise management to deliver all the details that lead to a great performance consistently,” said the tactician in a past interview with Times Sport. Kiyovu surrenders title…at the last minute The Green Baggies were so close to winning their first league title in 29 years only to lose it to APR on the final match day. The club’s inexperience in title run ins cost them, but they will take comfort that they managed to push APR to the final day of the season. Kiyovu knows where the title was lost and with the group staying together for another season, there is little chance that they can repeat the mistakes that cost them the title. Rayon Sports’ title woes continue The Blues have gone from title challengers to an ordinary club that can only fight to finish in a good position. The club has never been the same since Moroccan forward Youssef Rharb returned to his parent Club Raja Casablanca after he reportedly claimed that the club had been treating him badly. His departure was followed by a series of injuries for then striking partner Onana Leandre, who is yet to recover from a back injury. The absence of the two players cost the club and their form has only been going from bad to worse with Brazilian coach Jorge Paxiao still struggling to bring the club back to their best. Should the club management not do anything in the transfer window, Rayon are going to remain an ordinary club. Poor refereeing decisions It’s no wonder many teams have refused some match officials to take charge of their fixtures due to different reasons, varying from corruption and incompetence. A number of match officials were criticised due to poor refereeing decisions in different matches during the season, with the majority being suspended. The poor refereeing decisions even drew the attention of government officials Local Government Minister Jean Marie Vianney Gatabazi criticised centre referee Abdul Twagirumukiza for ruling that Musanze striker Abeddy Bigirimana’s goal was offside yet replays showed he was onside. The match ended with Kiyovu defeating Musanze FC, a game in which they would have struggled to get three points.
